The Theme of Genocide in Armenian Literature

Abstract

The Genocide of 1915 marked an important juncture in the history of Armenian literature.2 Prior to the massacres reading matter was primarily written in the Armenian language, but with the dispersal and exile of the population after 1915 there was a shift in emphasis to diasporan literature.3 With the settlement of a large number of Armenians in the United States, the English language also became a vehicle for expression and it was only a matter of time before the Genocide became a primary theme in Armenian-American writing.

Keywords

Short Story American Immigration Village Life American Writer Armenian Struggle

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See T. Chahinian (2008) The Paris Attempt: Rearticulation of (National) Belonging and the Inscription of Aftermath Experience in French Armenian Literature between the Wars (Dissertation) (Los Angeles: UCLA, ProQuest LLC ) where the author presents another viewpoint on the inability of Armenian writers to discuss the genocide.Google Scholar

11.

M. Nichanian (2002) Writers of Disaster: Armenian Literature in the Twentieth Century, Vol. I, The National Revolution ( London: Taderon Press). Nichanian, in the introduction to his volume, presents the case for the usage of the word ‘Catastrophe’ (Aghed) to describe the near complete annihilation of the Armenians in the Ottoman Empire, beginning in 1915. He presents a framework for understanding the motivations of Western Armenian writers after the Catastrophe (pp. 1–22).Google Scholar

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L. Z. Surmelian (1945) I Ask You, Ladies and Gentlemen ( New York: E. P. Dutton). Surmelian’s work focused on the transition and challenges faced by newly arrived immigrants in the United States. He studied agriculture in the United States and later lived and worked on a farm in Kansas.Google Scholar

13.

P. Noorigian (1937) Aykegoutk: The Vintage ( West New York: The Author).Google Scholar

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H. Gelenian [Hamastegh] (1924) Giughe ( Boston, MA: Artsiv). Hamastegh lived the latter part of his life in the United States, writing in Armenian.Google Scholar

G. Goshgarian (1985) ‘List of Armenian Literary Works Translated to English’, Armenian Review, Vol. 38 (1): 73–122, his listings are a comprehensive look at works by noted writers in Armenian whose works have been translated into English);Google Scholar

Nichanian (2002); M. Tölölyan (1955–6) Dar me Hay Grakanut‘iwn, Vol. 2… [A Century of Armenian Literature] ( Cairo: Husaper). These critics and scholars, although focusing on the impact of the Genocide on the literature, provide a broad overview of Armenian-language literature produced in the United States, at least through the period of the 1960s.Google Scholar

Saroyan was born in Fresno, California in 1908, and lived his entire life in the United States. His early works addressed many universal concepts, among them relations between people and attitudes toward war. It was only later in his life, in plays such as ‘The Armenians’, ‘Bitlis’, and ‘Haratch’, that he began to explore the Armenian response to exile, especially the permanent exile of living in the United States. For an excellent biography and discussion of Saroyan, see D. S. Calonne (1983) William Saroyan: My Real Work is Being ( Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press).Google Scholar

W. Saroyan (1934) ‘The Daring Young Man on the Flying Trapeze’, in The Daring Young Man on the Flying Trapeze and Other Stories ( New York: Random House).Google Scholar

41.

W. Saroyan (1937) ‘Country, How Do You Like America’, in Little Children (New York: Harcourt, Brace and Company ), pp. 210–14.Google Scholar

43.

W. Saroyan (1986) An Armenian Trilogy, D. Kouymjian (ed.) ( Fresno: California State University Press). The first work, ‘The Armenians’, takes place in Fresno and is a discussion of identity, alienation and homesickness. The third play, ‘Haratch’, is centered in a newspaper office in Paris and involves a dense discussion of the concept of identity.Google Scholar

During the past 30 years, to further their understanding scholars have begun to formally analyze and classify the English-language Armenian literature produced in the United States Diaspora, establishing a critical framework based on a variety of approaches. See M. Bedrosian (1991) The Magical Pine Ring: Culture and the Imagination in Armenian -American Literature ( Detroit, MC: Wayne State University Press )Google Scholar

See Leo Hamalian, long-time editor of Ararat magazine, who is also a formidable critic and writer: L. Hamalian (1978) Burn after Reading ( New York: Ararat Press);Google Scholar

L. Hamalian (1980) As Others See Us: The Armenian Image in Literature ( New York: Ararat Press). He is a second-generation author. Vahe Oshagan was a frequent contributor to the Armenian periodic press, writing in both Armenian and English. Ara Baliozian is a writer living in Canada who has broad knowledge of Armenian literature. His essays and commentaries provide a context for modern Armenian-American writing. His works such as Portrait of a Genius and Other Essays (1980) (Los Angeles, CA: A/G Press) and Views/Reviews/Interviews (1982) ( Los Angeles, CA: A/G Press) comprise many of his essays on the role of the Armenian writer in the Diaspora.Google Scholar